Want to save the world? Buy a HUMMER

Here's a test of your unyielding devotion to all that is cloaked in green. First, let's set the scene. It's the wee hours of the morning, the wind-driven rain is still howling against your house, and you're huddled on the second floor, waiting for morning. You've spent most of the night trying to stanch the flow of water into the basement, and those hours of backbreaking labor with sandbags and utility pumps have left you dog tired, devoid of fight. The power is out, and all you've got is a safety candle and an AM radio, and you're just waiting for the incoming tide to lap off the joists beneath you. With all due respect to Gordon Lightfoot and the crew of the Edmund Fitzgerald; the gales of November came early.

Among the general chaos outside, you hear the steady rhythm of an engine. Small blocks always make music, but this time the tune is particularly joyous. At once, you're on your feet, peering out the window. The thrum of 8 cylinders working hard gets ever louder as the vehicle draws near. Could it be rescuers? The National Guard? Looters? All of a sudden, you're blinded by a wash of light as a bank of KC Highlighters gets trained upon your house. You recoil, your eyes taking a moment to adjust to all the candlepower. Who is it?

[Source: Advertising Age]

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It's your salvation, and he's driving a bright yellow HUMMER H2. While this storm is likely a manifestation of impending global climate doom and the H2 is about as morally repugnant to you as making kitten pie, for the moment, you couldn't be happier to see one. HUMMER itself is the first to admit that their brand isn't for everyone. Brand manager Megan Stooke aims to recast the machoest of GM trucks as four-wheeled saviors the world over. For sure, the demonization of the blocky SUVs has been rather extreme, especially when you consider that HUMMERs are little different from the rest of GM's trucks. Stooke wants to show how they can be a force for good, too.

A new advertising campaign called "HUMMER Heroes" demonstrating how owners and rescue personnel rely on HUMMER vehicles to help others will launch soon. GM's going to go live with a microsite where owners can send in stories and pictures detailing how they came to someone's aid with their machine. GM has donated 19 HUMMER vehicles to Red Cross chapters since 2004, and they're set to continue with that effort, ultimately delivering 72 vehicles to the organization. While the H2 initially sold on the strength of its style, there is real off-road prowess under there, as well. Serious off-roaders and disaster-response units have seen that while Hummers make big, lumbering replacements for station wagons, they're great when you've got to fight a wild fire. As one owner commented to GM, "Nobody asked me what kind of fuel economy I was getting" while he delivered water to Hurricane Katrina victims.